


Days of Man

by jdphoenix



Category: Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-20
Updated: 2013-01-04
Packaged: 2017-11-21 18:41:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/600911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jdphoenix/pseuds/jdphoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Klaus estimates he has less than a week before his enemies hear of his new-found mortality and seek him out to end his life, but the gift of spending all his remaining time alone with Caroline certainly softens the blow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mortal Coil

**Author's Note:**

> As of writing this I've only seen season 4 through episode 6 "We All Go A Little Mad Sometimes." I've tried to keep things loose enough that I won't directly contradict canon but I hope you'll forgive me if I do.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

The light hurts Klaus' eyes. When he moves his arm to block it out so he can keep on sleeping, he discovers that everything hurts. He keeps his eyes shut. Some extra sleep might help.

"Oh good, you're up." Never would Klaus have thought the sound of Caroline's voice bringing him back to the waking world would be unwelcome but today it is a little too high, a little to chirpy, and a little too cross.

"Whatever you need, love, it'll have to wait." He hasn't felt this way since that time in Spain when he was caught off-guard and held in enchanted chains for a fortnight before breaking free and killing everyone within half a mile. That in mind he adds, "I'd like someone to kill, if you wouldn't mind." It made him feel better last time.

Caroline laughs humorlessly and the sound strikes him as ominous. He rolls off the lumpy bed he's been sleeping on and finds himself bound to it. He finally opens his eyes and discovers he's belted awkwardly into the backseat of a car. The light that hurt his eyes is the afternoon sun reflecting off Caroline's hair as she drives. He eases up and looks carefully around the confined space. They are alone. Interesting.

"Where are we?" he asks casually. A ride into the unknown with Caroline isn't something he'd disagree with, though he's not fool enough to think this isn't some ploy to keep him from whatever nefarious scheme of his the Salvatores are angry about now. Still, even if he forces her to turn them around right now that's still a few hours (if the unfamiliar landscape flying by is any indication) alone with her.

He undoes the seatbelt to lean into the front seat and repeats his question.

Caroline screeches and the car veers dangerously to the left before she gets it under control.

"What are you doing? Buckle up! Right now!"

He chuckles. "Pretty as you are, I doubt you'll even have to compel any officer who pulls you over."

He catches sight of her concerned, fearful eyes in the rearview mirror and instantly it all comes back. The Five, the cure, his mother's latest vindictive attack from the depths of whatever netherworld she inhabits. He's human.

He knows he's moving slowly, his fingers have gone numb and he can't quite guide the buckle into its slot, but he feels as though he's moving fast, far too fast. All-of-eternity is very abruptly shortened to until-the-Grim-Reaper-finds-him. With his list of enemies that won't be long at all once word gets around.

"Stop the car," he says and hates how it sounds, small and frightened like he's a child who wants his mummy. Well mummy's the one who did this to him and if she has her way he'll be along to see her soon enough. " **Stop the car!** " he thunders.

To her credit, Caroline eases to a gentle stop, presumably to keep him from flying through the windshield. Once they've stopped moving he propels himself out the door and heaves bile into the yellowing grass on the roadside. Small stones pebbled with broken glass bite into his palms and he feels the skin break, blood flow. He used to love blood - the taste, the sight, the feel of it. Now even the faintest whiff threatens to turn his stomach again. No wonder Mikael hated him.

Caroline presses a moistened rag to his face and wipes it clean of sick and sweat. She pulls the shards and sharp stones from his palms and wipes the skin clean. She says meaningless phrases meant to soften the blow and somehow guides him to the car. She sits him in the back again, saying something about a suicide seat. She presses some sort of snack bar into his hands and orders him to eat. He barely pays attention but knows the intellectual part of his mind is carefully cataloguing her every action. The smell of her, the feel, the rare pleasure of having her concern focused on him. He had that once but it was all meant for Tyler and though he cherishes the stolen memories, these will be so much more dear to him when he finally rises from his stupor.

The view changes. They pass through unending back roads and detour into a municipality barely large enough to call itself a city. It's long past nightfall when they stop at a cheap motel. The lack of Caroline's presence brings him back and he curses himself for not only letting her out of his sight, but letting one of his few remaining sunsets slip away unseen.

One of those at least, can be remedied. He fights his way free of the seatbelt, throws open the door, and stumbles out, nearly knocking the returning Caroline over. He grabs her by the arms, as much to keep her from moving away as it is a show of anger.

"Don't do that again!" he growls. The difference between the tone of this threat and the same one given yesterday is so great he almost sinks to his knees in despair but adrenaline holds him up.

"Stop that!" Caroline hisses. "Do you want everyone in the city to hear you?" She pulls his hands away from her arms and finds he's still holding the unopened snack bar. "You need to eat," she says, not meeting his eyes. She reaches past him to close the car door before holding up a key attached to a large, plastic keychain with the number four printed on it. "Can you make it to the room all right on your own?"

He reaches for the key and takes her wrist instead. "You're not leaving." Again. He doesn't say it but if the melting ice in her expression is any indication, she knows it's there.

"I drove all night. I've been driving all day. I stole a car. Do you really think I did all that just to abandon you here?"

He doesn't remember any of that. He can only imagine how difficult that must have been on her.

Caroline twists her arm in his grasp. He lets her go and obediently takes the key. She winces and rolls her wrist as she steps back.

"I'm just gonna get us some food. Take-out, so it won't be long. Any preferences?"

He shakes his head. He hasn't eaten in over a day and he was no stranger to hunger while human. Anything will satisfy.

She makes to climb into the driver's seat. "The room's right over there. There's only the one key so…"

"I'll let you in," he says, trying to regain some of his composure.

She nods. They both know the cheap motel locks will be little good against anyone coming after him but leaving the door unlocked isn't an option.

He follows the direction she indicated and easily finds their room. Had he more strength, were he in anything approaching good humor, he might laugh. Only a few days ago sharing a room with Caroline was high on his list of goals. Now it is simply a necessity for his survival.

It's not until the door is firmly shut behind him that he hears the engine start up and he is somewhat comforted to know she has watched over him. He doesn't reach for the light switch. The curtains are threadbare and too narrow. The shadows are layered in the thin, pinkish light coming through the flowered cloth and a single band slices between the two sections to cut the room in half. Klaus navigates his way over fraying carpet to sit upon the single queen bed.

Things do not look good. He will die. That is an absolute now. Perhaps tomorrow. Perhaps the day after. Perhaps he will be permitted a few decades of torturous waiting. It is more likely though, that he will die before the week is out.

Oh, there are alternatives but none seem likely. He may not be a vampire any longer but he is a werewolf and without him, there is no turning into a hybrid again even if Elena was struck human as well. Which brings to mind another problem, one he selfishly pushes aside in favor of watching the light of the streetlamp turn the white key chain yellow.

He sifts the ugly bobble between his hands, the embossed numeral winking at him as it catches the light. He's always had a special affinity for the number four. It's his after all. Fourth son. Four women to break his mother's curse - three to die, one to live. That had been the plan anyway. And actually it worked out. He never thought of it that way before but even though he lost the witch, the doppelganger lived, which in the end was better. Or it was until she died, until his hybrid army started turning on him. Things probably would have been better if the witch had lived, not that he'd have known.

A gentle tapping from the door startles him so badly he jumps. In this weakened body he's vulnerable and his instincts have already begun adjusting to that reality. Caroline gives him a weak smile and a wave through the break between curtains. He lets her in.

"We should have a system," she says immediately. She flicks on the light without commenting on the dark. She hands him an icy drink as she passes and lays the McDonald's bags on the bed before jumping on herself. When he doesn't move to join her, she pats a spot beside her on the garish maroon comforter. He's struck again by the irony of having exactly what he so long dreamed for when he's in no position to enjoy it. Somewhere his mother is laughing. He obediently sits down and she begins describing the foods as if he's never been to a McDonald's and needs a tutorial.

He cuts her off. "I have eaten fast food before." He pops a fry in his mouth as evidence of his competence. Instantly his stomach feels painfully hollow. He grabs the nearest hamburger and barely manages to tear off the wrapping before taking a bite.

Klaus has eaten in the finest restaurants in the world. He's eaten with kings and emperors. A world-renowned chef once even named a dish after him in deference to his exceptional palette. He has never eaten anything as good as this burger. He actually moans with pleasure, eliciting a giggle from his companion. He quickly grabs for his drink to cover up the faux pas.

"Oh!" she says while he takes his first sip. "I didn't know what flavor…"

He takes a longer sip of what turns out to be a shake and smiles at her. "I cannot imagine anyone arguing with chocolate."

"You're a thousand years old. You have to have met someone who didn't like chocolate."

Reluctantly he stops eating to speak to her. If he has only days to live, his time left in this world measurable by mere hours, he can think of few ways better to spend them than speaking with Caroline, even if his stomach is demanding nourishment.

"I was born on this continent but chocolate was not available this far north, as you should know. Once my family returned to Europe it was several centuries before chocolate was exported from the so-called New world. It was a luxury and universally enjoyed. I can assure you of that since no one would dare tell me they didn't like it when I so obviously did."

She begins to smile and he cannot help but do the same.

"You cannot imagine the feeling. I'd lived hundreds of years and all of a sudden I felt I was truly alive!"

She laughs outright at this. "Not even during my worst cravings did I love chocolate that much."

"That's because you've never lived without it," he teases.

The humor of the moment fades as quickly as it came. She pulls into herself and gives the food her attention. Klaus does the same, satisfying his stomach before attempting conversation once more.

"A system?" he asks.

"Huh?" She munches on another fry while she waits for him to elaborate.

"When you came in," he prompts, "you said we needed a system."

"Oh!"

She shifts on the bed, bringing her folded legs around so that she faces him fully. It is most likely a subconscious attempt to gain his attention and thus better her chances of being agreed with, which means she should not be doing it at all. Either she does not truly believe his affirmations of his regard or she is so insecure that she cannot believe even someone as dedicated to her as he is would truly listen to her. Before he would have made it his mission to cure her of either misconception but now, with so little time, he is not sure how even to begin.

"I mean for knocking," she says. "So we know it's really each other and not …" She trails off, reluctant to put a name to all that they're running from.

Klaus shifts as well, matching her posture, and reaches across the short distance to pull one of her hands between them. This is not at all what he wanted. He wanted her, yes, but he wanted power too. Power to keep them both safe and secure. She should not have to want for anything while with him. His fingers find her wrist. The gentle thrum of her heart is not proof - a well-fed vampire has a functioning heart - but her manner is. Her gaze drops and turns away. Her shoulders slump.

"You are cured." He cannot help the sneer on the final word.

Caroline's hand slips from his and back to her lap. He does not follow and does not pursue the matter. If he pushes her, she will push right back and that is not a battle he wishes to fight or a discussion he wants to have.

There are other questions whose answers he could seek without so much risk. Why is she helping him? What exactly happened after he lost consciousness? Where are the others?

Klaus takes another sip of his shake. He does not have much time but the answers will not gain him any more. He eats his meal, stops when Caroline warns him his stomach will turn on him if he goes on. After that he lays on his side and learns the angles of her face from this new perspective.


	2. Cathedral

Caroline has a halo when she pulls herself up the last rung of the ladder. Fitting. She has been his guardian angel for the last day and a half. She settles herself beside him, legs dangling over the edge of the roof just as his are.

"Beautiful," she murmurs.

"It is. I'm sorry that I won't have time to replicate all the colors in the rising sun, though I doubt I'd ever have been able."

"You could still have time." He is more surprised by the hand that finds its way into his than he is by her heartfelt reassurance. She is wrong, of course, but it is a sweet sentiment.

He holds her hand in his, enjoying the simple liberty of touching her until the sun finally shakes off the horizon to float unfettered above the mountains. The sunrise over, he turns to her and takes yet another liberty. He strokes her cheek, imagining for a moment that he means more to her.

"You know that is not true. Word will spread quickly - thanks to Stefan's loose tongue there are enough people who know what I was after to put the pieces together. Soon my enemies will begin closing in."

Her head droops and she bites her lip. It is terribly endearing. He coaxes her head up with a finger under her chin and a pleading smile.

"It is time you told me what happened."

She lets out a shuddering breath and begins. With his mother's interference the curing spell went wild. Magic shot through the air like lightning seeking a ground. Klaus was hit first and hardest. That much Klaus remembers. Bonnie fought his mother as well as her living acolytes who had schemed against him. Hybrids arrived, led by Tyler and thinking this an opportunity. Their presence most likely saved many of the vampires from being targeted by the spell.

Caroline admits she does not know what became of Tyler in the chaos that followed. It is little comfort. She saved Klaus from the battle but did not keep her eyes on Tyler, yet she singles Tyler out in her narrative and says the bare minimum of Klaus. Not very promising, but he will take what he can get with so few days left to him.

She shrugs as she winds to a close. "And that's pretty much it. Matt helped me pull you out before anyone could kill you. He told me to get out of there and … I did."

"Why didn't you just return to the Salvatores'? It would have been safer than running."

The depression hanging over her falls away, replaced with a spark of that fire he has always enjoyed in her. "Where any vampire can just waltz in? I don't think so."

He smiles as that. He thinks it will be the closest to a real answer she will give him on the subject and he is selfish enough not to press the issue. He will not question this gift of her presence. He nods, satisfied.

The past put to bed, Caroline pulls a folded roadmap from her back pocket and lays it out on the roof behind them. "We need to find somewhere safe, someone who won't want to kill you because you wiped out their whole village or whatever eight hundred years ago."

"When I commit mass murder I make it a habit to kill anyone who might seek revenge as well."

She frowns at him as though he were an unruly child. "There has to be somewhere."

Her optimism makes him chuckle. "There is nowhere on earth safe for me, Caroline."

He sees instantly that he's made a mistake. She seems so forlorn, almost heartbroken at the idea that he is universally unloved. Odd, seeing as she has hated him since long before they met.

"What about your family? Or those witches who work for you?"

"Rebekah was with us when the spell was cast and may be in the same predicament I am, I would only add to her trouble. As for my brothers, I doubt either of them would be willing to help me after the last few hundred years. The witches served me in a bid for power. As I am now there is little chance of me ever regaining any. I could try bluffing them but a witch is more likely than anyone else to see through a ruse and more likely to punish me for it as well."

Caroline smoothes the map and mutters, "You sure do know how to make friends." She stares intently at the paper, fingers moving back and forth as she searches. He lunges - precarious since he's mortal and on the edge of a roof - and presses one hand over hers to stop her movements.

"How did you decide before?" he asks.

She looks up into his face. They're dangerously close. He can count her eyelashes, name the shade of green hidden in the depths of her blue eyes. He only has a short time left on this earth. He should kiss her.

Amazingly though, he finds he doesn't want to. He only has a short time left and he shouldn't ruin this.

Still, he is not Elijah. He is not gentleman enough to be the first to pull away. He watches a blush color her cheeks like the sunrise. Her eyes fall to his lips and he wonders if perhaps he is lucky enough that _she_ will kiss _him_.

She pulls her hand from beneath his and leans away. He obliges her, settling back into his pervious location.

"I just drove," she says, shaking her head. "Sometimes I'd pick the first turn off or I'd say whichever exit came up right when a song ended, just anything to get away."

"Then that's what we'll do. Even if there was someone whose loyalty I could still hold like this, anyone looking for me is more likely to look with them first."

"All right. At least we have a plan." She is clearly not happy they have a plan. She wants order and structure, a place to go and a route to take. Well, he wants to live another thousand years so clearly neither of them gets to be happy.

He precedes her down the ladder to ensure she does not fall. Once at the bottom she is quick to put distance between them.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" she asks.

"A little," he says and does not add how disappointed in himself he was when he woke up and found he'd lost even more of his remaining time.

She is disappointed in him as well but for the opposite reason. He quickly turns things around.

"What about you? I imagine last night was the first time you'd slept since the battle."

"Actually I pulled over in a rest stop about five hours out of Mystic Falls and slept most of that first night. So," and she sticks her tongue out at him.

He laughs. She smiles too, her blush returning. He snatches the keys while she is preoccupied and heads for the car.

"Hey!" she yells, feet pounding after him.

"We can switch off at lunch, all right?"

She huffs in response and marches angrily to the passenger side. He raises an eyebrow at her.

"What happened to the suicide seat?" he asks innocently.

"Just open the damn door, Klaus."

He does as she says but does not bother to hide his laughter. When he pulls into the first drive-thru they pass, she makes it clear she's angry by leaning over him to order and getting him the most disgusting breakfast burrito he has ever seen.

They eat on the interstate, stopping only occasionally to stretch their legs and refill the tank. Late in the morning Caroline emerges from an overpriced convenience store with heavy bags. He can see pieces of junk food logos through the translucent plastic and reaches for one. She spins elegantly, gliding past him to deposit the bags on the floor of the backseat. If she's still so angry with him, he decides it's time he relinquished the driver's seat. He holds out a hand with the keys, waiting patiently for her to turn around. When she does she immediately slaps a fresh drawing pad and box of pencils in his hand. He's so stunned she has to yell at him to get in.

The ride is much more pleasant after that. Caroline changes the radio station anytime an even remotely sad song comes on, yet always manages to find a song she knows to sing along to. Klaus curls up in the corner of the passenger seat, smiling at her closeness, and sketches. The paper is cheap and thin, meant as a last resort to entertain unruly children on the open road. A Swiss army knife from the stolen car's key ring serves as a pencil sharpener. Still, it is paper and pencil and a gift from Caroline besides. It is all he needs.

He searches for inspiration in the passing landscape and finds it does nothing to move his spirits. He spots a corner of a farmhouse as they take a curve in the road and makes a game of imagining the rest of the building and property. He draws Mystic Falls, the town as it is now right beside the village of his childhood. Mostly though, he draws Caroline. She is happy in a way he's never seen her while she sings and he passes much of the day capturing her joy on paper. The dilapidated turret of an abandoned church sits above the tree line and catches his eye. He gives the country church the rich trappings of the great cathedrals he saw erected in centuries past. Stained glass and sweeping balustrades all drawing the eye upward. When Klaus realizes what he's done he tears the page out and drops it into the wind running alongside the car. Even if there is a heaven that would welcome him, he imagines his mother and father will be waiting to drag him down to the depths of the deepest hell before he can even catch sight of Peter.

If Caroline notices him throwing out the drawing, she makes no comment. Uneager to return to sketching, Klaus sits back to watch her drive. She is once again changing the station and stops as the upbeat sound of a brass band comes through the speakers. Klaus recognizes the song immediately and is mildly surprised when Caroline joins in without any hesitation.

"What?" she asks, cutting off mid-verse. "What's with the look?"

The look she is referring to, he assumes, is the contented smile which has overtaken him without his realizing. "Nothing," he answers quickly, raising his hands in preemptive surrender. Her tone indicates she expects mockery so he adds by way of explanation, "I didn't know you were a fan of Gershwin, that's all."

She does not seem placated but she responds, which is almost as good. "I'm a fan of Hepburn actually - and what does that mean?" Perhaps it is not quite so good as he thought. "Just because I wasn't around when they invented music!"

"I never said-"

"I listen to every piece of music before it's okayed for the decade dances, do you think I don't like what I pick? I _like_ getting dressed up in my Founder's Day costume. I like Jane Austen - the _books_ too, I don't just watch the movies! I even like Shakespeare when he's not going on and on about kings and wars and death. Even though I'm not a million years old, I am allowed to like old stuff!"

"Of course you are," Klaus cuts in. "I was only surprised yet again by your excellent taste."

The road before them is straight and empty of any other vehicles so he recognizes her choice not to look at him as a conscious one.

"You are so full of it," she says but she cannot stop her smile and her cheeks pinken considerably.

He considers responding, laying it on a bit thicker, but the radio DJ's voice fills the momentary silence.

" _And remember to tune in at 7:13 tonight. That's when the full moon rises and we begin our night-long marathon of moon tunes._ " A burst of sound, clips of romantic songs and songs meant to chill, takes the show into its commercial break. A car salesman compares his business attitude to his home life.

They forgot, both of them, and it's no wonder. Why worry about the full moon - even Caroline who could be killed by a werewolf while she was still a vampire - when all the wolves in town were hybrids? There has not been cause for the citizens of Mystic Falls to mark the moon's phases for many months now.

Klaus breaks the silence between them. "There was a church only a few miles back. It looked abandoned."

"You think praying will keep you from transforming?" Caroline asks. She tries to make it sound like a joke and fails. Despite her objection she begins turning around and he sees the effort it takes her to loosen her grip on the wheel.

"I think being inside will give the wolf something to do before it breaks out and starts rampaging," he says darkly. He's never transformed without also being a vampire. There's no telling how much control he will have, if any. "It will also give you time to put as much distance between us as possible. You should have done it yesterday. Two days with no sign of my enemies is beyond anything I could have hoped for. Don't go back to Mystic Falls though, not until you know I'm dead. I won't have someone torturing you for my location."

"What? You think I'll leave you? I told you-"

"This is not a discussion!" he yells. The car sways as Caroline jumps but she manages to translate the motion into finishing the turn. He forces himself to calm down and wonders if perhaps his heightened anger is the beginning of the transformation. "We are not in Mystic Falls anymore. The wolf will have no vampires to hunt. It- _I_ will go after the most readily available prey and we've seen barely a dozen cars all day." He remembers with painful clarity the cold weight of Henrik in his arms, the sweet, rotting smell of his little body already beginning to decompose. His mind, adept at all manner of torture, is quick to put Caroline in his brother's place. "I have never transformed from a human into a wolf, I have no idea how much control I will have. I don't want to hurt you, Caroline."

She does not answer but he knows he's won.

Caroline takes the first dirt road turn off they find without hesitation. The curving road is covered in many autumns' worth of leaves but Caroline navigates the path with relative ease. After only a few minutes the trees open up onto a graveyard, guarded over by the church Klaus spotted. The grass is overgrown, the white paint peeling. They're unlikely to find a more remote spot before moonrise.

Klaus can feel the hum of the engine vibrating through the plastic door handle. He is not certain how to say what needs to be said. He struggles, searching for a beginning. The "I'm sorry" stumbles out the moment he arrives on it.

"What?"

He can hear tears in her voice and forces himself to look at her. Her eyes shine. He remembers that she has been through this before. She watched Tyler transform for the first time. He does not want her doing the same for him.

"I'm sorry I didn't take you to Paris."

"Klaus," she says as if to stop him. She reaches for him.

He catches her hand and her attention with it. He is deadly serious. This is a serious matter and he will be dead soon. Nothing else will ever be this important.

"I'm sorry you didn't get the thousand birthdays I promised you."

She twists her wrist to escape but he does not let her. This is hurting her but he needs her to listen.

"But I am glad you were cured." He allows a moment for the confusion to settle in. "This means you could still have Paris. You could still have all those birthdays." He rubs his thumb over her pulse, taking some comfort in her warmth. "You can find someone in Elijah or Rebekah's bloodlines - please not Kol's."

He smiles, inviting her to do the same. Her stricken expression does not waver, in fact she looks even more horrified. Good.

"It should not be too hard. Who could ever allow your beauty to fade if given the chance to preserve it?"

Caroline's eyes are shut tight as a tear roll down her cheeks. "I think," she says, "that the next time I die, it'll be for good."

"Then make it a long life at least. Promise me you'll try."

She worries her lower lip and blinks to see him through her tears. She nods.

"Good girl." He shifts across the seat, intent on kissing her forehead. She lifts her chin and catches his mouth with hers.

It is chaste and over far too quickly. She pulls back only far enough to break the connection before leaning her forehead against his.

"If I have to live a long life you have to try too," she says, her warm breath falling over his face and making him dizzy after the shock of the kiss. "Don't go looking for trouble."

He nods because it is what she wants of him and because it is an excuse to touch more of her with more of him, even if it is just their foreheads, just the soft flutter of her eyelashes on his cheek. She puts a hand to his chest. There is no force in her touch but it is a clear sign she wants him to go. There is a sound like a small animal and it spurs him into motion. He does not want to see her cry.

He relives those last seconds a hundred times as he passes between the gravestones. He keeps his right arm cradled to his chest, treasuring the phantom feel of her wrist in his hand as long as it will last.

The church doors take some effort to open, in part because he will use only one hand to pull. Dust and flecks of paint fall on his face when it finally springs free. He does not wipe them away but instead imagines they are a protective coating, preserving Caroline's final goodbye. He steps into the shadowy interior and pulls the door shut behind him. He hears the engine rev softly and smiles into the dark. Like last night Caroline has watched over him until he reached safety.


	3. Vulnerability

It is a good place to pass this night. The church is a single room, large enough to hold maybe fifty parishioners while it was in service, assuming many were willing to stand. Most of the heavy pews are still bolted to the floor, giving him something to rip apart while he is in the throes of transformation. The windows are high and narrow, wide enough for a wolf to slip through but with any luck narrow enough to discourage him from trying immediately.

He removes and folds his clothes in a corner of the dais, hoping they will still be there come morning. He supposes the transformation should frighten him since he has never truly gone through one before but he cannot muster enough caring to worry. He has been beaten, abused, killed, cursed, staked, tortured, and desiccated over his long life. He does not think one night of unimaginable torment will be anything special.

He then picks his way through the filthy floor, stepping around woodchips and animal droppings. He wipes off the end of the nearest pew and sits in a beam of still-bright light. He realizes suddenly that he left the sketchbook with Caroline. It would be a good way to pass the hours before the pain becomes too intense but it is better if she has it. He would only destroy it and in her hands it will be a memory.

He does not kid himself with the hope that he might live the long life she asked him to. As he told her, two days was far too much to expect after the cure stripped him of his immortality. Truthfully, he has no real hopes of living to tomorrow.

If he were coming after him, he would do it tonight. He will be vulnerable for hours before the transformation completes and after he returns to human form he will be in no shape to fight off an attacker. Yes, it will be tonight.

He looks around the steadily dimming room, becoming his father's son once more. He remembers Mikael's heavy-handed lessons as he scans the debris. Death had ever been Mikael's familiar friend and he fought him with everything in him and taught his sons to do the same.

"I teach you to fight with sword and spear," Mikael told them once, "but you will not always have these things. Battle is a messy business and no enemy will wait for you to get your bearings. It is always better to strike an unarmed man than one who might kill you in his last breath. You never want to be that unarmed man."

"But you just said-" Kol received a smack for the interruption.

"So look around you! If there is not a weapon forged or fashioned ready in your reach, what else is there? Remember Samson, my boys," his father said heavily. "The judge killed a thousand men with only the jawbone of a donkey. You must learn to work with the tools you are given, even when they seem unfit to the task."

Klaus hefts a broken piece of wood in his hand. It is carved to be support for the railing which once encircled the dais. It is a good fit if a bit short. He spots another, still attached to the railing. He braces the railing beneath his foot and pulls the support free. Three nails come away with it and Klaus smiles. Better and better.

He finds other weapons in the disarray. In the shadows behind the last pew a section of floor has given way under a fallen bit of roof. It will be invisible in the dark of night with only thin moonlight coming through the windows. Klaus discovers a section of wall behind which pipes are rusted, many broken with jagged edges. He pulls many of these away and plants them in the soft ground under the hole. A few he hides among the pews along with one of a pair of candlesticks so heavy they can break bone. The other he keeps with him.

It is not until the darkness is so deep he cannot see where he steps that he realizes he has felt no pain even though several hours have passed. He finds a seat to the side of the church and tries to quiet his pounding heart so that he might hear anyone approaching. He schools his thoughts. He remembers happy days before his death, when he still had his brothers and sister, when he could still love his parents simply for being his parents. He remembers watching humanity rise, tackling each new phase of artistic expression. He remembers finding a new brother in Stefan and resolutely pushes away the reasons why he needed him. He remembers the complete freedom of his first transformation in almost a thousand years. He remembers dancing with Caroline.

Peppered among the memories are his defenses, meager as they are. He runs through their locations, marking the distance between them, the shape of the room, with footsteps and arm lengths and running strides and the length of his fallen body. He catalogues it all until the room in his mind is more vivid than the one around him.

When the light of the moon no longer comes through the windows on his right but slants through the windows on the left, he finally allows himself to accept the reality. He is not a werewolf.

He can guess at the how. The witch who created the cure, rather than go to the effort of breaking his mother's spell outright, cast a new one over it, transforming the object of the cure into a human. Fear of his increased vulnerability is drowned out by elation. He has only to do exactly what he told Caroline to do. He must find a vampire, transition, take a human life, and he will be what he was before.

It is not a perfect plan. He has never heard of any other werewolf triggering their curse after becoming a vampire but neither has he heard of a latent werewolf being unable to transition into a vampire. Perhaps they were bound by his mother's curse as he was. It is something to look into later.

Later! He has a later now! He nearly cries out with joy.

He will need a witch to oversee the transition and transformation just to be safe but it will be easy to find one now that there is real hope. He will go to Katerina - why he didn't think of her before he has no idea and hits himself for such stupidity. She always has a witch or two in her pocket and she wants nothing so much as to survive. She will help him. She's in his bloodline and will extend his life to extend her own.

His smile has grown so broad it is beginning to hurt but he cannot stop. In a matter of days he will be himself again.

* * *

As soon as there is enough sunlight to see by, Klaus is dressed and out the doors. He carries the candlestick with him just in case, only to drop it before he reaches the edge of the churchyard. The car emerges from the trees and Caroline steps out the driver's side. Relief and worry war in her expression and she takes uncertain steps towards him.

"Are you o-"

"Why aren't you with Tyler?" he asks.

She looks as though he's struck her and perhaps he has. He needs to know this. Yesterday he was willing to ignore it, blessed to have her near and unwilling to end it when he had so little time left. Now, with the whole of eternity before him, he has to know what she is thinking. He cannot see what game she might be playing this time but it wouldn't be the first time he didn't see the cross coming.

"Don't lie to me," he says when she seems unable to come up with an answer. "I deserve the truth, now at least." He draws on his earlier vulnerability. If his mortality will gain her sympathy he'll use it.

She looks away, struggles for words. "Lots of reasons."

He presses down on the hope he feels. Love is not killed by any one thing. There would have to be numerous strains to tear her apart from Tyler. He raises an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

She huffs as if she's given him all the answer he needs. "I- we- he- argh!" She stomps her foot. "It wasn't Hayley," she says, which is really more honesty than he expected. "But it kind of was. It was all that stuff with the other hybrids." She crosses her arms and leans against the hood of the car, looking off towards the trees. "He … Tyler's a good person. He wants to lead the hybrids and help them. He cares about them."

Klaus frowns deeply. He crosses the grass in quick strides and lifts Caroline's chin. "You are good." She tries to pull away and he doesn't let her. "I am one thousand and thirty-nine years old. I have met the best and worst this world has to offer and you, Caroline Forbes, are a good person. Do not let anyone tell you different."

"No, I'm not! I asked you to give me a hybrid just so Jeremy could kill him. Tyler cares about everyone. All I care about is Elena and Bonny and Matt and Stefan and-" She cuts off but the way her eyes cut to him tells him how that sentence would have ended.

"I make the list?" he prods, smiling.

"Of course you make the list," she grumbles, trying to look away from him. "I wouldn't be here if you didn't."

He lifts her up and spins her. Her golden hair flies out. Her eyes dance with laughter even as she yells for him to stop. He laughs as well and keeps spinning until he can no longer remain upright. He falls to the soft grass with her atop him. She instantly pushes up on her elbows, asking if he's alright.

He can't stop laughing and says so. She smiles, her face bright and shining in the light of day.

"I can fix that," she says playfully.

He realizes what she is about to do just before she does it. This kiss is not so chaste. One of her hands remains on the ground, curling into the grass as the other wraps around his neck, angling his head to where she wants it. He buries one hand in her hair and slides the other down to her hip. She drags her body over his, pulling herself higher on him and eliciting an instant physical response. He hisses at the sensation and she smiles proudly down at him.

"You should not do things like that, love."

She distracts him by tracing her hand over his shoulder. "And why not?" She shifts her weight from her knees to her hips and he feels her other hand at his belt.

He growls, sounding more like himself than he has in days, and flips her over. Her hand flies from his belt, tugging it loose before letting go. She stares up at him, wide-eyed, from the grass, her hands resting on either side of her head. "You shouldn't start things you can't finish."

She smirks. "Who says I can't finish?" she asks defiantly. She moves up so suddenly he jumps, thinking they're going to bump heads. She ducks under him and pulls down his pants past his hips, then pushes up with her shoulders. She lends grace to what should be an awkward move, leaving him dumbfounded in the grass with her once more atop him. She smiles, radiant in her victory.

"I suppose I should know better by now than to underestimate you."

Her smile grows and she quickly bends down to kiss him.


	4. He Loves and She Loves

It's probably the paper crinkling that wakes Caroline. He doubts she slept any more than he did last night though he hoped she'd get a little more today.

"Afternoon, love," he says as she rolls over. He found a blanket in the trunk of the car while she slept. She secures it over her chest as she rolls and carefully drapes it over her buttocks. He smiles at the action. He's already seen all of her and he is still quite naked.

"Afternoon," she says with a smile and he feels a wave of relief. Pleasure at waking up beside him is only one possible reaction; he thought of a thousand other, much more negative possibilities while she slept.

"I'm plotting our route," he explains as she takes in the map unfolded on the grass before him.

She shuffles closer. The length of her body presses against his. It is a simple show of unity, a desire for closeness that requires no sexual response. Klaus presses back.

"So we have a plan now?" she asks, slightly petulant after yesterday's lack of one.

"Yes. We're going to see Katerina."

He expects Caroline to pull back but he is no less disappointed for that anticipation.

"You are not serious."

"I absolutely am." Klaus begins folding the map as he rises from the ground. Caroline follows and snatches the map out of his hands to fold it herself.

"She hates you. She hates me. She hates everyone on the planet. How do you expect to get her to help you?"

Klaus puts a hand over hers before she rips the map in two. "She is also a survivor. She won't be satisfied with what remains of my mortal life, even if it might be decades. She'll help."

Caroline shakes her head, unhappy with his decision but unable to refute his reasoning.

He turns away to begin dressing. The reminder of his bloodline can only help him. She admitted she has no idea how many of her friends were struck by the cure and she won't want to risk any of their lives by hindering his attempts to regain immortality.

"I'll be right back!" Caroline calls. Klaus whirls to see her, fully dressed and disappearing into the trees. He immediately acquaints her hasty retreat with his earlier search for a nearby but discreet location to relieve himself.

When she returns sometime later, blushing, he says nothing, only waits for her to get close enough to see over the gravestones. She grins widely at the sight of the carefully laid picnic breakfast. It isn't much with mostly gas station fare in the car but he has managed to supplement it with some of the nearby vegetation he recognizes as safe to consume.

She hugs him briefly and has the good manners to wait for him to sit before allowing her hunger to get the better of her. All too quickly she is hesitating over the last handful of the berries he picked, of which he has eaten none.

"Oh, don't stop on my account," he says, not bothering to hide the laughter in his voice.

She looks decently sheepish but still takes the berries. Her appetite is most likely taking its time readjusting to her human metabolism and he takes the opportunity to begin his next plan. He refuses to have finally won Caroline only to watch her slowly succumb to death.

"I appreciate a woman with a healthy appetite," he says idly, "and it will serve you well in Paris."

She nearly chokes on the berries. "Paris?"

"I thought we'd go in the Fall, see out the year. The city of lights at Christmas, it is truly magical - and you know I do not say that lightly."

She wavers. The image of Paris, glowing and covered in a blanket of snow is almost too much to resist but he knew Caroline would never be that easily won. She shakes her head as if to throw off her tempting thoughts. "I'm going to college in the Fall."

"There are colleges in Paris."

He is careful to look perfectly innocent while she frowns disapprovingly.

"I'm going to _Duke_."

"Ah," he says delicately. For him the school is tied to Isobel but he understands that for her it is a link to her former teacher. He was not particularly overwrought at Alaric's death but he was a decent sort of man - while he was alive at any rate. Klaus allows a moment of silence to observe one of the many dead friends in Caroline's life but quickly rebounds. "Then I'm sure I can find something to keep myself busy in North Caroline. Perhaps there's an opening for an art teacher."

Caroline laughs and he presses the advantage, easing closer to her.

"We could start quite the scandal, you and I. Private tutoring, late night drawing sessions - with a nude model of course."

"Oh really?" Caroline asks, shortening the distance between them further still. She knows exactly how much power she wields here. "A male model, I hope."

"If it's the male form you think you'll be having the most trouble with, you could always refresh your memory now."

She smiles broadly, all sensual tension dropping in a moment of giddy relief. "I was hoping you'd say that." She pounces on him, the rest of their meal forgotten.

They finally get going when Klaus realizes that once darkness falls there will be no finding their way back to the road. Caroline tries even harder to keep them from leaving after that and he takes great pleasure in throwing her over his shoulder and forcing her into the car.

The radio is still on the same oldies station it was yesterday evening and they listen in silence as the light fades from the sky. They pull off the road at the first sign of city lights and come to a town so small they're nearly through it before they realize it's there.

They pay cash for a room in the local motel and meander across the two lane Main Street towards a small diner that looks to be the town's only restaurant aside from a clump of fast food places right next to the highway. The only sign of life on the street this late is a stray dog who comes to them, tail wagging in search of some food. It's obviously not underfed and most likely is a local favorite, earning treats and a warm roof wherever it looks. From the way Caroline coos at it Klaus knows they'll be saving some of their dinner in hopes of feeding the mutt on their return to the motel.

They are the only patrons this late at night. When the waitress asks for their order and he speaks in an American accent, Caroline has to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. She is not recovered in time to order herself and Klaus orders for her.

"It's a long story," he tells the waitress by way of explanation and after she gives their order to the kitchen it seems she's hoping to hear it by eavesdropping on their conversation. Klaus glowers until she moves away.

"Be nice," Caroline whispers. "It's past midnight, they're keeping the place open just for us."

"And they should be thankful for our business," Klaus counters as he places his silverware correctly. "I doubt many travelers bother to look past the neon lights to see this little place."

Caroline only rolls her eyes at him and makes a point of placing her silverware incorrectly.

"Any idea what you plan to study?" he asks.

She looks up at him with wide eyes.

"At Duke."

"Oh! Right. I'm undecided for now. I can't think of anything I enjoy enough to study that long-" She points her fork at him- "and don't suggest art. I know what I like, I'm no good at telling when something's actually decent."

"I'll let you in on a little secret, love." Klaus leans across the table conspiratorially. "That's what everyone does. That's why it's art."

He leans back just as their food comes. It is surprisingly good and if he wasn't so eager to get Caroline back to their room, he'd order dessert. Perhaps they can buy a pie for the road.

"You know, you could be a teacher." Caroline has been eating as steadily as he has up to now so he knows she is picking at her potatoes only to avoid looking at him. "So long as you keep those murderous urges in check, you could - I don't know -" But she does. He knows by the way she says it that this has been on her mind for some time. "I'm not saying you have to _Stand and Deliver_ or anything, but you sort of light up when you talk about art and- and history. You could be good at it and it would be something meaningful. Maybe not to everyone and I know it's cheesy to say 'if you can make a difference in at least one kid's life…'" She trails off and seems to lose some of her steam. She puts her hand over his on the table. "Just think about it, okay? You don't have to be defined by all the things you did before."

While he has been planning his campaign to make her see how much better life will be as a vampire, she has been planning her own to show him the value of a human existence. He cannot help but smile. She takes this as a sign she's made her point and returns to her meal, high color in her cheeks.

They spend the rest of the meal in near silence, content to enjoy the fine cooking. Klaus makes no comment when Caroline leaves an extra large tip. He even makes a detour on the way out to personally compliment the chef. The old woman, Mae according to her nametag, tells him to be sure to stop in for breakfast. She promises chocolate chip pancakes and something tells him Caroline will enjoy that very much.

They pass the rest of the night as they did the day, though more comfortably now that they have a bed.

* * *

"Oh my God! These are delicious!" Caroline says through her first bite of pancakes. Klaus laughs at how utterly improper she is being and at the wide grin on Mae's face when she hears. Now that he knows he was right he feels free to eat as well and heartily seconds Caroline's assessment.

"As good as Paris?" she asks teasingly.

"Better. Paris doesn't have you."

She kicks him under the table.

There's at least another full day of driving to reach where his spies last pinpointed Katerina's whereabouts and he'd like to find her before the week is out. Caroline runs to the bathroom before they set off and leaves Klaus to handle the check. He leaves another sizeable tip and takes a turn about the small dining area, stretching his legs before the long ride. He nods politely to Mae as he passes the register; it seems the waitress is on her break and they're alone until either she or Caroline return. Klaus turns his attention to the full-length glass windows at the diner's front, preferring to watch the stray from last night make its way down the street over idle chit-chat, even if Mae's pancakes are the best he's ever had.

The dog marks the corner of the motel and wanders into the middle of the road, only to rush back onto the sidewalk as a large van pulls to a stop right behind Caroline's stolen car. The dog approaches the driver's door, its tail wagging eagerly. Klaus assumes this is a local the dog knows and turns away, looking anxiously for Caroline. The image of the man emerging from the car catches at the corner of his vision.

"Isaac," Klaus breathes and instantly regrets it. He turns, hoping the vampire didn't hear. Isaac and the dog are gone but the motel door is swinging shut.

"Did you say something dear?" Mae asks.

Klaus crosses the room quickly, eager to be away from the windows. "Is there a back door?" he asks.

"Through the kitchen, why?" Mae comes out from behind the counter and follows Klaus into the narrow hallway containing the bathrooms. Klaus doesn't bother with knocking. He pushes the swinging door open to find Caroline and the waitress standing at the two sinks.

"We have to go."

Caroline tenses instantly at his tone. She spares only a moment to say some inanity to the waitress about disinfectant and follows him out the door. She slams into his back as they round the corner. Mae is behind the counter with a low-caliber pistol trained on him.

"Are you criminals?" she asks.

"No," Klaus lies.

There's the stolen car after all, not to mention the murders. Caroline may not be wanted for hers but that doesn't mean they didn't happen. As for Klaus, he has only rarely been identified but he knows for a fact there's at least one small European town where every generation of law enforcement is given a three hundred year old sketch of him. He did murder the one and only princess to ever set foot in their dingy little hamlet and they have never forgotten.

"Just a little bit of bad blood between me and the man who just pulled into town. I wouldn't want to inconvenience anyone."

Mae has obviously seen enough to know at least a measure of what that inconvenience would be. He doubt she knows the extent of it - Isaac would readily burn this town to ash and salt the ground where it stood over a lover's scorn, there's no telling how far he'd go to get Klaus.

"And I suppose there's a good reason I shouldn't just have the sheriff escort him out of town?"

"A very good one," Caroline says.

Mae steps aside. Klaus pulls Caroline into the kitchen. He does not know when he took hold of her hand.

"Hold up!" Mae yells, stopping them at the back door. She tosses Caroline a keychain. "There's an old truck out back. It probably doesn't have another hundred miles left in it but it'll get you away."

"Thank you," Caroline says. Klaus nods his agreement tersely. They need to _move_.

"Oh, don't bother. The insurance company will give me more for a stolen truck than I'd get selling it for scrap."

Klaus tugs Caroline through the door. The truck doesn't look like it will run at all but Caroline gets the engine to turn over.

"Who is it?" she asks as she pulls out from the shadow of a dumpster. Some of its stench has settled into the truck. Klaus cracks a window.

"Someone from long ago, before even Katerina's time. He drove in a large van but I didn't see anyone else with him. Dark hair, too well-dressed for this place. He has plenty of reasons to hate me, I promise you that."

"I wasn't really questioning that part. Get down."

He obediently ducks, pressing his chest flat against his thighs. Caroline doesn't rush. She even slows to a near stop at one point and Klaus hears her talking to the stray dog out her window.

"All right," she says after a few minutes. "I don't think he's following us. I didn't see anyone like you described anyway."

Klaus eases himself up, muscles protesting the awkward position he held them in. "No," he says when she makes to turn onto the highway. "Go back."

"What? But I thought we were gonna go after Katherine?"

"Keep going," he orders and glances at the passenger-side mirror, worried their sudden stop might be drawing attention. "It's no coincidence Isaac showing up here. He's tracking me. There's no way this piece of junk will get us to Katerina before he catches up and we at least know the road we've already covered."

"But so does he," Caroline points out.

"Not necessarily. I haven't seen or heard of Isaac in over a hundred years. It's possible he came from the opposite direction and we only happened to cross paths here."

"Right," Caroline says and pulls into the proper onramp. "This way we might have an advantage, that way we definitely don't. Sounds good."

They drive in tense silence. Klaus does not try to imagine what is on Caroline's mind, his own thoughts are distressing enough. Isaac is old and powerful but still not an Original. Like many of Klaus' enemies he stopped seeking revenge only because the pursuit became pointless. There was no killing Klaus and indirectly harming him through those he cared for was nearly impossible. His family are immortal (with the possible exception now of Rebekah) and attachments such as his to Caroline and Stefan are rare.

There is the possibility Isaac will value his own life over revenge. He might be stopped with the simple revelation that an Original's death wipes out their entire bloodline and in Klaus' case that most definitely includes Isaac. That will require getting Isaac to not only listen but believe him. Even if Klaus succeeds in that, there is the unfortunate fact that Isaac no doubt knows about Caroline by now.

"Any idea where we should go?" Caroline asks. It has been over half an hour with no sign of Isaac's van.

"A city," Klaus says, fighting off relief that will only make him sloppy. "Somewhere big enough we stand a chance of getting lost."

"Uh, we might not make it that far." Caroline's eyes are fixed on the rear-view mirror.

Klaus turns and sees the dark van, still some distance away but it is the hare to their tortoise.

"The church then," Klaus says. Maybe he'll have the chance to use those weapons after all. He explains his make-shift plan to her quickly, knowing better than to hope for the time to do it once they're there.

All too soon they feel the first tap. The truck swerves and Caroline presses the gas to the floor, bringing them just far enough ahead to avoid being pushed off the road into the trees. The next tap is more like a punch. Klaus barely avoids slamming his forehead into the dashboard and the horn blares as Caroline is thrown into the steering wheel. Still, she manages to keep them on the road. Isaac is going to drive them off the side into the trees, most likely killing them both in the crash.

"Can you pull alongside him? Get him on my side?" Klaus asks. At this rate they'll both be killed, at least if he gives Isaac all the pertinent information there's a chance they'll live.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" Caroline demands. "I am barely keeping this thing on the road and you want me to―shit!" Caroline slams the breaks to keep them from spinning out on a curve. Klaus hears a loud, painful scraping at the rear bumper and sees Isaac's car slide into the oncoming lane. He doesn't see if it skids off the road entirely. Caroline's already thrown the car back in gear and is taking off.

"You're good with a stick," Klaus says.

"Yeah, you can thank Matt Donovan for indirectly saving your life once we get back home."

Whether from general disrepair or the damage it suffered in the chase, the truck starts waning. When Isaac catches up with them only minutes later he takes his time, slamming into them repeatedly. It's all Caroline can do to keep them moving forward. They're both so distracted by the fight that they've almost passed the turn off for the church when Klaus sees it. Knowing it's their best shot, he grabs the wheel. The car spins completely around, stopping only when the front and rear ends slam sideways into the trees on either side of the dirt road. Isaac is already backing up to ram the passenger side when Klaus opens his door. Klaus stumbles back, sees the ragged front bumper of Isaac's van fly past, watches the door he just opened be driven through the truck's windshield.

"Klaus!" Caroline screams.

She catches him under his shoulders and pulls him around the truck, into the woods. They stumble through the trees and Caroline keeps slowing them down. First she makes Klaus stop and take off his jacket, then she wastes time ripping it to pieces and when he thinks they will finally get moving again she's pressing the cloth to his arm so hard he almost screams. He looks down to see if she's done any damage.

"Oh," he says.

The cloth is soaked through and dripping. A trail of bright red follows his steps. The van's damaged bumper. His artery. Klaus nods in understanding and feels the world tilt around him.


	5. Jawbone

Klaus wakes up in darkness. At first he thinks night has fallen but when he shifts his weight, light streams through cracks in the sky. He's been buried beneath a blanket of branches, thick with leaves. He moves to tear them away but pain shoots through his right arm just above the elbow. He rolls a little to the right, cradling the arm without actually moving it, and tries again. The pain is just as sharp but this time he expects it and can feel too the heavy numbness beneath his elbow. Slowly he remembers the flight from Isaac as well as his injury - but where is Caroline?

Angry at his lack of answers, he tears through the branches with his left hand. He looks to his right arm in the light and feels his stomach drop deep into the earth. His belt is wrapped tightly around what remains of his arm, tightly enough to stem the flow of blood before the limb would be cut off.

His vision blurs out for a moment and comes back clearer. He can see now that his arm is not gone, only buried.

He digs carefully with his left hand and eventually pulls out his filthy, bandaged, but still whole right. It is discolored and swollen. His useless daylight ring is cutting into his skin, the flesh bulging out on either side of it. The bandages are still moist with his blood but he chalks that up to being buried. That, he realizes with a touch of pride, was to prevent the smell of blood from drawing Isaac - or any forest animal - to him. Clever girl.

Infuriating girl. It's clear she hid him and ran off to draw Isaac's attention. To what purpose? She cannot hope to defeat a vampire, especially one his age. Besides, Isaac is after him. If he doesn't kill her - Klaus fists his uninjured hand at the thought - he'll only drag the information out of her.

She's safe, Klaus realizes because the alternative is too painful to consider. Unless she found some vervain in these woods, Isaac can compel her, which means he would be here by now if he captured her.

Should he stay where he is? Caroline might have been in too much of a hurry to properly remember the location. His traitorous mind points out that if she didn't put it to memory it cannot be compelled from her. Klaus shakes himself. Worrying over her will not help him. If she remembers where he is, it will be safest to stay in one spot, but if she doesn't then she could search the area between the road and the church for hours without finding him.

The church. He will find his way there. It is the last place they were trying to go and she knows there are weapons of a sort hidden away there. It's the logical place for them both to go.

It is slow going. Klaus has lost a great deal of blood and the adrenaline of the chase burned through his breakfast. He snags berries and nuts as he trudges through the woods. The sun is low, meaning he slept most of the day. He keeps it just over his left shoulder as he heads for the road. It's a larger landmark than the church and he is unlikely to miss it.

He comes out of the woods a ways from the turn-off and follows a trail of shattered glass and bits of metal workings. He and Caroline must have crossed the dirt road while running from Isaac but he certainly can't remember it. The truck and van are gone, leaving behind only small debris and cracks in two trees. Someone probably called highway patrol when they found the wreck and couldn't get past. That, or Isaac pushed the cars into the woods to avoid outside interference.

This possibility in mind, Klaus heads back into the woods. He keeps the dirt road in sight, following it at a distance. He finds the van and truck after the first curve. He examines them as best he can through the trees and when several minutes pass with no sign of life, he ventures closer.

Isaac is nowhere to be found. Klaus finds his own blood staining the bumper of the van but a search for possible weapons turns up not even a tire iron. He is just about to leave when something about the van catches his attention. The antenna seems to be the only part of its front half that wasn't destroyed and hanging from its base is a thin, silver band studded with blue. Caroline's daylight ring. She must have worn it out of habit - or perhaps a secret hope that she'll need it again. Klaus pulls the ring over the top of the antenna as he silently berates himself. This means Isaac has her and is waiting.

Klaus walks into the woods, finds a relatively comfortable stone, and sits. He positions his right hand in his lap and twists the ring in his other. He could go. He could walk out of the woods, hitchhike his way to Katerina, restore himself, hunt down Isaac - by which time Caroline will be dead. No one will know but them that he abandoned her to die and of course Isaac will die very quickly after. No one could blame him either, even if they did know. He is one man - one _human_ man - with not a weapon at hand and an arm that he'd be better off cutting off for all the good it will be in a fight.

_Remember the judge, my boy._

"I am remembering the judge!" Klaus snaps, looking down at the dirt and muck at his feet because surely his father has not found a place in heaven. "But what can I do?" He gestures to the trees. "I have nothing to sharpen a branch into a stake with, but with enough force the jagged edge of a broken branch would be just as useful. Yes, father, that sounds perfect, except that I only have one arm and it is **mortal!** " He is on his feet, yelling at the dust and the bugs as he paces. "I know he is in the church but there's no telling what he's done. He could have found and destroyed every weapon I made and even if he hasn't, I don't stand a chance as I am now. But of course that's what you mean, isn't it? You want me to go in there, go to my death because it is exactly what you have always wanted! I was your son! For every moment of my life while I lived I thought - we all thought! - I was your child, but did you care? Never! I wasn't ruthless enough. I wasn't gracious like Elijah or pious like Finn. I wasn't the leader you were." He is bent in half, hand dangling in the dirt, face so close to the earth dust flies back at him as he yells. "You already killed me once! What will doing it again solve?"

Everything. It will solve everything.

Klaus stumbles back and lands among the roots of an ancient tree. If he goes into that church and dies, he wins. Isaac will die with him because he's part of his bloodline. Caroline will live because she's human.

There is almost no way to lose provided he is willing to die.

It's the sun that finally makes up Klaus' mind. He has to get wherever he's going before it sets and he loses the light.

He sits in the shadows just beyond the tree line, watching while the light fades until even the white church and headstones are almost gone, then as they slowly start to glow in the moonlight. The church doors stand open and he can hear Isaac, not the words he says but the sound of his voice yelling from within. There's a crash of wood and a cloud of glistening white puffs up into the air over the steeple. He's brought part of the roof down.

If Klaus is very lucky he'll have brought it down on himself.

If Klaus is very unlucky he'll have brought it down on Caroline.

It's about time he made his move. He falls to his knees after only three crouching steps towards the church. He looks back at what caused him to stumble and finds the heavy candlestick he brought out with him yesterday. He grins; it's better than nothing after all.

He hefts it in his hand and continues his circuitous path to the doors. He darts from headstone to headstone until there is nothing left but to mount the steps. He spares a moment to loop the free end of his belt and secure the candlestick in it. He makes certain it's resting behind his arm when he stands, he doesn't want Isaac knowing he's coming in with anything other than himself.

A wind whistles through the churchyard as he mounts the steps. He goes slow, allowing his eyes time to adjust to the light and showing Isaac he's in no hurry. Just as he climbs the last step he touches his pocket to feel Caroline's ring inside. At the same moment he sees her hair, illuminated by a beam of moonlight from the hole in the roof. She's awake, sitting on the edge of the dais, and watching his approach in horror. Klaus can see no injuries on her but even his human nose can smell the blood.

"Klaus," Isaac says. He steps out from the shadows, planting himself to block any path Klaus might take to reach her. Klaus smiles.

"Isaac. Long time no see. Last I saw you, you were off on a trip to the East Indies."

"You locked me in a coffin, threw me in the cargo hold of a merchant ship, and compelled the crew to ignore any of my cries for help."

Klaus does not allow himself to look at Caroline but she doesn't seem surprised by the story. Isaac has no doubt spent the better part of the day detailing their history to her.

"That does sound like something I would do," Klaus says. Even without his eyes on her, he can tell Caroline is rolling her eyes.

Isaac's entire body tenses like an animal ready to pounce, only to relax a moment later. His smile shines sharply in the moonlight.

"But things have changed for you since then, I hear."

When Isaac doesn't continue Klaus steps inside, looking casually around the dusty church and counting the weapons Isaac has left untouched. Caroline is trying to communicate something to him with only her eyes, probably a warning to get out already.

"Oh yes," Klaus says, "quite a lot. I broke my mother's curse, settled down in the old hometown, started building a hybrid army-"

"You're human," Isaac says disdainfully when Klaus draws parallel with him.

Klaus meets Caroline's eyes for one brief moment as he swings slowly around to face Isaac with a look of cold derision. "And where did you hear this slander? Whoever they are, I hope they're not too attached to their head."

"Rebekah."

That's a surprise.

"What?" Caroline asks. She's still got her tongue at least.

Klaus only raises an eyebrow. "She has always hated you, ever since you chose that Austrian princess over her. She's probably hoping I'll bring her _your_ head." He smiles pleasantly.

In answer Isaac wraps one hand around Klaus' throat and squeezes. "And how do you plan on accomplishing that?"

"Klaus!" Caroline screams.

Isaac tosses him back. Klaus sails through the air, weightless until the moment he slams into the wall. He hopes the crack he hears is only the boards.

"Your sister," Isaac says as he stalks over a pew towards Klaus, "is just as pathetic as she ever was. She is so torn up over her most recent crush that she practically begged me to kill you, if only I'd let him go."

Klaus marks each of Isaac's steps. When the vampire is only one away from the end of the pew, he lunges for the next row, feels cold metal in his palm. Isaac jumps down and pulls him to his feet, pressing him into the wall with one palm flat on his chest. Klaus cannot breathe.

"Don't worry, Niklaus. I'll only make your death take a day. Maybe two. The girl can watch. I think her screams will be prettier than yours."

Klaus jams the metal pipe from beneath the pew into Isaac's stomach. He runs the second his feet hit the floor, leaping over the back of the first pew to reach Caroline. Part of the railing he tore apart yesterday is pinning her palms to the floor at her sides. If Klaus had both of his hands he could free her but with only one he knows he'll be lucky to get even one of her hands free. He's already heard the snap of the rusted end breaking off the pipe, it's only a matter of seconds before Isaac pulls the remains out and comes after him. He feels the stake budge just as footsteps pound towards him. Instinctively he tightens his grip and it's Isaac's tackle that enables him to pull the stake free.

Isaac lunges for Klaus' throat and Klaus stabs up at him with the stake. It is nowhere near his heart but slides between two ribs to puncture a lung. Isaac wails like an injured animal, bucking up and giving Klaus the opportunity to pull his candlestick free. Caroline comes at Isaac from behind and is swatted back into the wall behind the dais. Klaus rises and in one fluid motion brings the candlestick down on Isaac's head. He does it again and again. He needs to crack the skull. He needs blood to flow. Suddenly Isaac isn't there anymore. Klaus stumbles forward. Isaac has moved around him faster than his human eye could track. Klaus knows a single moment of disappointment. If only he could have gotten a drink of Isaac's blood. Fingers like steel wrap tight around his throat.

"You know," Isaac says through the roar in Klaus' ears, "I think letting you live even one more day would be too kind." He squeezes. The last thing Klaus hears is the bones of his neck cracking.

* * *

The light hurts Klaus' eyes. He brings his hand up to block it out and realizes it's his right hand. He pulls it away from his face to examine it. His daylight ring shimmers in the sun. The bandages are gone, leaving no sign of any injury behind.

Confused, Klaus sees he is still in the church. The sun has risen and bright light streams through the ceiling. He turns to his left and sees Isaac's body laying haphazardly against the dais. His head is lying several feet away. Could Caroline have done that?

Klaus sits up quickly, eager to find her. There's a soft thump from his right. Caroline is there. Her hair looks white against the grey of her decomposing skin. Her body is curled alongside his, her hand still clutching at the air where his arm had been.

There is a sound like crying or screaming but Klaus cannot care where it is coming from. He falls atop her, smoothing the hair away from her face. Her skin is cracked and peeling, like a painting in desperate need of restoration. He touches her cheek gently, careful not to disturb the delicate flakes of skin.

He lies beside her as lost memories of their flight from Isaac float to the surface. He remembers passing out in the woods and coming awake to her wrist pressed against his lips.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she whispered, her forehead pressed against his as he drank her blood. He was too lightheaded to realize why.

She then lay him down right where he sat. She must have belted off his arm earlier because she began burying it right away. She pressed a kiss to his bloody lips before wiping them clean.

"I need you to forget this," she said, looking deep into his eyes, "just for a little while, so I can tell you without you getting angry, okay? Now don't move and go to sleep."

Rage swells in Klaus' chest. If he knew Caroline had healed him, he could have gone out into the road, let himself be hit by a car, and then drained the first human he encountered upon waking. He could have been a hybrid again and killed Isaac before the sun had even set.

"Why couldn't you have just told me?" he asks. His hand ghosts over her cheek, the shadow of a caress. His fingers curl into the hair at the curve of her neck, digging into her rotted flesh until he feels her shoulder blade. "Did you think I would want you any less if I knew you were with me only to preserve your own life?"

He shakes her furiously and her head lolls back like a doll's. He's filled with remorse and carefully rearranges her body as best he can to match the way he found her. He will come back, he promises even though he knows it is most likely a lie. After he drinks human blood to finish his transition and kills to restore his werewolf side, he will gather her up and take her to her mother. She will be buried in a tomb with her vampire hunting ancestors. They at least will be happy. Their daughter will no longer be a blight upon their name.

Klaus fixes a lock of her hair that his breath has blown out of place. He realizes that this image of her, lifeless and rotting, will haunt his drawings for some time. He considers really returning to burn the church to the ground. He's always felt vampires should burn if they are unlucky enough to die.

Klaus bows his head. He is only wasting time now. If he doesn't move soon it will be too late.

He gives her hand one final squeeze goodbye and feels her squeeze back. Wide eyed, he watches Caroline take a single breath which brings life back to her flesh. She blinks at him and smiles sleepily.

"You're okay," she says.

"So are you," is all he can think to say. The color is still coming back to her cheeks, taking them from gray to pale to rosy to a blistering red. Caroline's eyes widen as the scent of burning flesh hits Klaus' nose. In a heartbeat she's against the wall, in the shadows.

"That bastard took my daylight right!" she yells, knocking her head back against the wall in agitation.

Klaus reaches for his pocket but stops at the last second. "Not the end of the world. I'm sure Bonnie will be more than happy to make you a new one."

Caroline pouts. "Yeah, but now I'm stuck until nightfall. Stupid sun," she mutters.

Klaus eases back against the end of a pew, preparing to ask his first question.

"Hey!" Caroline says suddenly. "How did you- ohhh! My blood, right?"

Klaus nods with a small smile.

"Should've known." She has the decency to look sheepish.

"You should have just let me remember," he says. "I could have transitioned and been a hybrid again in a matter of hours and Isaac would have been no trouble at all."

She crosses her arms over her chest and looks away.

"I do understand though. You didn't want to risk dying, nothing wrong with that."

Caroline's gaze swings back to him. "You think- you think I didn't tell you because I didn't want to risk that your stupid bloodline wouldn't come back to life when you did - which, don't get me wrong, really good to know - but do you really think that's why?" She glances at the open doorway, at the light streaming in. The distance between them impassable, she grabs the remains of the pipe he stabbed Isaac with and hurls it at him. It hits him in the chest with little force.

"Then why?" he asks. "Why do any of this, Caroline?"

Caroline deflates a little. "I just- I don't know. I just wanted you to be happy, I guess. You're not happy when you're killing people or when you're trying to get more power - which always seems to end up with you having less power, I've noticed. I figured this was your chance. No expectations, no dietary habits that result in murder, no torturing people - hopefully. … I just wanted it to last for as long as possible."

Klaus tosses her the ring. It is not the answer he would have hoped for but it's honest and it doesn't change the fact that she still chose him.

"Come on." He picks up Isaac's head, a present for Rebekah. "I've got to feed soon and since you've put me in such a good mood I'll even wait until we find a particularly heinous criminal to awaken my werewolf curse."

Caroline catches up to him at the steps and they venture out together.


End file.
